The Cheap Revolution

Saluting President Obama: Somethings Changin' Round Here

  Today President Obama introduced us to a new social media President.  From his Twitter Account to his streaming YouTube Videos to his highly successful grass roots campaign, he has used social media on the Web like no other candidate.  And did you check out the new www.whitehouse.gov?  It is complete with a post on Communication, Transparency and Participation.   How cool is that?

Today also gave us the President Obama as a world-centric President.  He invited those with clenched fists to unclench them and join us.  He acknowledged every man, woman and child seeking peace and dignity.  He acknowledged that our problems are global - and require global solutions.

Personally, I'm also excited to see the election of possibly our first really Integral president.   He acknowledged the exterior economic problems captured in data, metrics and charts.  But then he also acknowledged the hidden challenge of our individual and collective interior's eroding confidence.  Integral Theory fans will see the hallmark of an Integral thinker in today's inaugural address.  This means that he'll be looking at problems through the lens of more perspectives and with a deeper understanding of complexity.

President Obama has laid the groundwork for new organizations to emerge to solve problems.  These organizations will be decentralized, emergent, technology-savvy and (potentially) global.  They are organizing to address problems and elect candidates, to understand markets and support movements.

It is truly a day to take stock in how you participate in communities.  Have you thought about how these changes are going to your business?  or your life?  Your social media strategy may need to be revisited in the months to come.

Thank you President Obama - and a Salute - to our 44th President of the United States of America. 

Using Vyew for Real-Time Online Collaboration

Our fourth "Cool Tool of the Week" this week will feature Vyew, a free online conferencing and collaborating tool offered by Simulāt, Inc., a Berkeley, California start-up.

Vyew allows users to collaborate through online work spaces called 'Vyewbooks'. Each user can create up to 20 Vyewbooks and upload up to 50 files for free accounts. The tool allows real-time sharing of your desktop as well as any shared files which you upload. File types supported include not just the usual word documents, excel and powerpoint files - but also GIFs, JPEGs and MP3s. Also, Vyew doesn’t require any client downloads.

The great thing about Vyew is that when you invite people into your Vyew account, you can limit their access to specific Vyewbooks, and even force them to follow you from one Vyewbook to another one in real-time if you are taking them through different content. Collaborators and moderators can also go in anytime after meetings to update any changes that need to be made to the Vyewbooks. 

The free VoIP and teleconferencing is an added bonus, especially for startups on a tight budget for online conferencing or collaborating. A recording and playback function is available in beta release at the moment, and is to be expected to be available in Vyew for general use in the coming month.

In the webcast below, Kyra Zhao of Team and a Dream introduces you to Vyew and walks you through some functions you may find useful for your small business.

 

Other web conferencing tools worth checking out include drop.io, GoToMeeting, and Budget Conferencing. 

Take a look at our previous Cool Tools of the Week!

1. Google Insights

2. Twitter

3. Blending Free Tools to Find your Social Media Mix - Groundswell and Quantcast

  

Launching your Web Business, Part I

Over at the "Inside Small Business: HP/Logoworks" blog, I put together a summary of some of the key steps for decisions around starting a web business.   We look at the Sweet Spot Analysis, Entrepreneurial Types and Bouncing your Idea Ball.  Take a look and let us know what you think!